1950s Hydramatic transmission oil screen keeps falling down during oil change!

[ToddH]

I need your help please my Hydramatic Transmission masters!!  I have a 1950 Series 62 and I'm changing the transmission fluid and gasket.  The pan and screen were full of sludge! I'm now ready to reinstall everything but I can't get the oil screen to stay on..  It keeps falling down and away from the smaller top tube.  How do I keep it on or have it stay in there while I put the pan back on?  Gravity keeps pulling it down and the pan itself doesn't hold it up it seems. The car is totally level to the ground. 

All I can think of is possibly:

A.  Are the pipes supposed to be longer/shorter?  I don't really want to start banging around to put
     one longer or one shorter. And it seems like the screen should be level as it is before it drops.
B.  I thought maybe the pan would hold the screen in place but it doesn't appear so after lifting it up
     in there, lots of extra room.
C.  RTV to hold it in place?  If so, will the transmission fluid then keep it in there because of
     buoyancy?
D.  I don't see any sort of clamp, screw or holder for the screen.
E.  I didn't see any o-ring or gasket when I removed it and the master parts manual doesn't show any of
     those either so appears it just should slide in and out.

Hoping there is something simple I'm missing!?
PS - Attaching some before and after pan pics.  I wonder how many years it has been! 

[J. Russo]

I don't know if your hydra-matic is similar to my '41, but when I first changed my transmission fluid the screen was secured with a long zip tie to hold it in place.

I couldn't see anything else to attach it with so after I cleaned the screen I put it back in with another zip tie.

I changed my pan gasket again recently and the screen hadn't moved.

[ToddH]

Wow, that could definitely be the solution so thank you for the tip!  Although I don't want to think if that zip tie falls off or breaks what it might do do the internals? 

Crazy thing is that there was nothing holding the screen on the tube when I took it out so I never even gave it a thought.  I slipped the screen out of the tubes and started cleaning.  But then when I went to put the screen back on and....what the?  Hmmm.  Again, thank you for the option!

PS - Here are some pics I took.

[J. Russo]

Todd,

I used the longest heavy duty zip tie I could find. You could connect 2 together if needed.

It seems to handle the temperature of the fluid when hot. I'm not sure how hot transmission fluid gets.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is aware of how these filters were originally attached.

[Joe G 12138]

    The pile of sludge in the pan was factory installed to hold the filter screen in place. If replacement glop is re-installed, the filter will be at the right height.   

[Alan Harris CLC#1513]

Back in the forties, GM put out a shop manual for the Hydramatic transmission. I have never seen one, but I have seen them advertised. I am sure that your answer would be found in one of them. Also, if you are worried about the effect of heat on a zip tie, you might be better off tying it up with a piece of wire.

[ToddH]

So, I used a stainless steel zip tie.  Thin, strong, corrosion and heat resistant.  But, I did cut off my first attempt because my instinct was to snug it up tight to hold it in there! Well, probably not a good idea to have the filter screen bottom (metal plate) butt right up to the top of the tube with little to no room for any in or out flow.

My second attempt was to snug the zip tie just enough so there was some room in between the tube and the metal bottom but with the tube still inside the screen.  I was able to place the zip tie in between two tubes so it won't slip off. I took it for a test drive and everything seems to be fantastic! 

Thanks everyone for the thoughts and ideas!